Take a look at Bruce Bochy’s new Giants lineup

San Francisco Giants outfielder Jarrett Parker blows his gum before his first game of the Battle of the Bay Series against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday, March 31, 2016 in San Francisco, Calif.

San Francisco Giants outfielder Jarrett Parker blows his gum before his first game of the Battle of the Bay Series against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday, March 31, 2016 in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Beck Diefenbach, Special To The Chronicle

Photo: Beck Diefenbach, Special To The Chronicle

Image
1of/44

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 44

San Francisco Giants outfielder Jarrett Parker blows his gum before his first game of the Battle of the Bay Series against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday, March 31, 2016 in San Francisco, Calif.

San Francisco Giants outfielder Jarrett Parker blows his gum before his first game of the Battle of the Bay Series against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday, March 31, 2016 in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Beck Diefenbach, Special To The Chronicle

Take a look at Bruce Bochy’s new Giants lineup

1 / 44

Back to Gallery

No Giant has experienced a bigger transformation than Angel Pagan, who has a new position, new spot in the lineup and new physical lease on life.

No longer slowed by knee injuries, Pagan has moved from center field to left and is the projected No. 9 hitter in manager Bruce Bochy’s renovated lineup, which has the starting pitcher in the 8-hole.

In the final year of his four-year contract, Pagan, 34, said he’s all in.

“It’s very deadly,” Pagan said of the plan to hit him ninth in front of Denard Span, the man who took his place in the field and atop the lineup. “You have two leadoff men. It’ll create a lot of situations. I like it. We’ll see how it plays out.”

Bochy called his eight everyday players into his AT&T Park office before Thursday night’s A’s-Giants exhibition to discuss his lineup ideas.

Aside from the 9-1 alignment of Pagan and Span, Bochy is leaning toward batting Buster Posey third and moving Matt Duffy (last year’s No. 3 hitter) lower in the lineup to separate the two left-handed-hitting Brandons, Belt and Crawford.

That’s how Bochy drew it up Thursday, and he might stick with it. It could put more runners on base for the Giants’ big hitters. It also could make it tough on opponents to match lefty-on-lefty or righty-on-righty, especially late in games.

“I told them this is a lineup I think you could draw out of a hat and be happy with it,” Bochy said. “That’s how much I think of all these hitters.”

In the past, Bochy was not a fan of his pitcher hitting eighth, a practice once used occasionally by St. Louis manager Tony La Russa and more regularly last year by Cubs manager Joe Maddon. But with the addition of Span, a healthy Pagan and convincing data from the Giants’ analytics department, Bochy is willing to give it a try.

“I give (Bochy) credit for being open to new information as well as using information differently as he looks at the strengths and weaknesses of the club,” general manager Bobby Evans said. “It’s important to be flexible and adjust as needed and be open to new things. He deserves all the credit.”

Just three times in the Giants’ history in San Francisco have they started a game with a pitcher hitting eighth, and all were Bochy lineups: Tim Lincecum on May 20, 2010 (Andres Torres hit ninth), and Madison Bumgarner on May 16, 2012 (Emmanuel Burris ninth) and Sept. 1, 2015 (Ehire Adrianza ninth).

Bochy tentatively plans to bat Bumgarner — who won his second straight Silver Slugger in 2015 after leading all pitchers with five home runs — eighth in Monday’s opener at Milwaukee.

“I don’t want to etch this thing in stone. I could change my mind,” Bochy said. “If we don’t score a run these next few days, you’ll see me scrambling.”

Crawford is coming off a career year and became the first shortstop to lead the Giants in home runs (21) since Bill Dahlen (seven) in 1905. Yet Crawford was the No. 7 hitter Thursday, much as he has been the No. 8 hitter in recent years when the pitcher batted ninth.

Bochy hit Crawford seventh because he’s most familiar hitting in front of the pitcher, saying, “I don’t think Brandon is a 7-hole hitter. I don’t think any of them are.”